California College Tuition Costs To Increase 32 PERCENT Due To State Budget Crisis, Students Protest Hike

BERKELEY, Calif. — The occupation of a campus building at the University of California, Berkeley, in a protest over fee hikes and budget cuts has ended peacefully.

UC Berkeley spokeswoman Claire Holmes says 41 demonstrators who had barricaded themselves inside Wheeler Hall were arrested on suspicion of trespassing around 5 p.m. Friday. The group, which included university students, was cited and released a little more than two hours later.

The demonstrators had occupied the building on Friday morning to protest a 32 percent increase in student fees and job and program cuts.

They were demanding laid-off custodial workers be rehired and amnesty for anyone arrested in the protest.

A group of students also rallied outside the building.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) – Officials say dozens of people occupying a campus building at the University of California, Berkeley, in a protest over fee hikes and budget cuts have been arrested.

UC Berkeley spokesman Dan Mogulof told KGO-TV late Friday afternoon more than 40 people, at least some of them students, had been arrested and the protest appeared to be coming to a "safe end."

Demonstrators occupied Wheeler Hall on Friday morning to protest a 32 percent increase in student fees and job and program cuts. Campus police said earlier in the day the demonstrators were barricaded behind fire doors on the second floor.

A group of students also rallied outside the building.

The occupiers were demanding laid-off custodial workers be rehired and amnesty for anyone arrested in the protest.

___

Information from: KGO-TV

Comments

[SteveDenver]

Blame Reagan! When he governed California, educational funding and tuition caps were destroyed. Junior college tuition went from $90 flat (up to 12 credits) up to $30-50/credit. 2/3 of students dropped out, enrollment tanked and colleges were forced to slash programs.

[Washington Kos]

Another big rally for stocks as the rich get richer. Great recovery, huh? Unless wall street recovers first there can be no recovery for anyone else . That seems to be the Geithner/Summer/Obammi mantra.

good articles: http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

the economy & stock market is a joke. Obama let everyone down except the usual water carriers & top 1% of earners. Saying home 2010 & 2012

[GrandmaBEE]

I have been explaining to my son, when protests start it is usually on college campuses. Here in the states and around the world example, China and Iran. So now I am trying to explain to him why the only thing that got them into the streets was a tuition hike. Why have we not heard from our campuses on health care issues, the two wars and the economy and jobs? We really have become a me society. They only stood up when it effected them personally.

[jalowe1957]

As the old saying goes, it's the children who suffer for the sins of the mother and the father.

[IntellectuallyHonest]

Young people speaking their minds...

[winningticket]

Yeah, well I wish they would speak their minds against these two wars, banksters being rewarded for crashing the economy, people losing their homes and livelihoods, the insane war on drugs and the lack of a universal health care system.

[katekid]

Has anyone asked Lieberman,
how he can support USA's subsidy
of Israel's PUBLIC health care system
and oppose same for Americans?

[Washington Kos]

It is time for middle class bailout. NO more stupid rebate gimmicks. No more more neoconservative politics. We need more jobs even if these jobs create an economic net loss.

rec. reading: http://financeopinionss.blogspot.com

I'm tired of this over emphasis on efficiency; the last thing that gonna be on policy maker's mind is efficacy when 60+ million unemployment American says they aren;t gonna take it any more.

[Siebenstein]

State Colleges and Universities; the next thing to go.

We love capitalism, don't we?

[Baltotoast]

Can't blame this one on Goldman Sachs....capitalism had nothing to do with an ungovernable state - idiotic legislative processes, a crippling Prop 13, a budget too reliant on income tax and capital gains. An unholy mess.

[winningticket]

Don't be so sure about that.

[Bettysdad]

This is a great opportunity for progressive activists to get out there in CA, and remind these students that this is the result of 40 years of Reaganomics in that state where people were convinced they didn't have to pay for society, and sane politicians were terrified to even propose raising taxes for the common good.

In about another 10-20 years we will finally see the results of Reaganomics on the national level, and we will be history.

Wasn't America great?

[Siebenstein]

no it wasn't . Not the way it was...

[mountainweb]

The problems in California have nothing to do with Reaganomics, but bad decisions by the voters of California allowing deficit spending with no thought as to where the money was coming from. They have been deficit spending for years and even this year wanted to continue deficit spending, a total lack of commonsense. The constant drone of blaming others will not resolve California's problems but stop spending money that they don't have..

[Bettysdad]

People wouldn't pay the taxes needed to run the state.

There's no deficit spending if there's sufficient revenues to pay the bills.

Read my post again.

[Ranta]

Year after year California has a budget gridlock because it takes a two thirds majority to pass the budget. That may have more to do with their problems than anything.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jul/05/1n5budvote225451-two-thirds-budget-rule-has-whole-/

[graffitijoe]

What an unlucky generation of kids! First they will have to pay this higher tuition, then when the new healthcare taxes kicks in they will be right in it's path - for the rest of their lives.

But you know this was coming - they'll also have to pay back the monsterous Federal defecit and pay SS to all the baby boomers for the next 40 years.

Poor things!

[jeanrenoir]

Except for civil rights progress, which was actually achieved by people much older than the Boomers, like King, though the narcissistic Boomers act like THEY did it, the Boomers and their Sixties were TOTAL disasters for the country. The stupid, selfish, childish Boomer mantra "Do your own thing [and to hell with everyone else]" led directly to yuppie Boomers, including virtually all the Wall St. bankers who just bankrupted America, "looking out for number one" (and to hell with everyone else). The Boomers have always pretended to care about their kids. But actual Boomer behavior, including their tax revolts in California responsible for their kids now facing 32% higher tuition, has been totally selfish. They dumped their kids in divorces, Boomer women as well as men. Then they bankrupted the country and left mountains of debt for the kids to pay off with much higher taxes (while the Boomers did everything they could to LOWER theirs, even if that, too, helped bankrupt the country and leave more debt for the kids). Now, for dessert, the Boomers, selfish as ever, having saved nothing for retirement, with their usual yellow submarine detachment from reality in a haze of grass or coke, are going to demand that their poor kids and grandkids pay HUGE payroll taxes to support these incredible Boomers in the style to which their credit card debts have made them accustomed. I hope their kids basically say, "Screw you, Dad and Mom. We're looking out for number one too."

[graffitijoe]

I agree with everything you have said here! The last line though will not happen because these same kids overwhelmingly helped Obama get elected and he will make sure the safety net is in place that these kids will have to pay for.

[mountainweb]

The bottom line, the smartest students will be looking for another school to finish their education at.

[Siebenstein]

here is 'silly season' GOP mountainweb again....

[mountainweb]

You have a passion for making worthless comments, none giving an intelligent contribution to the discussion.

[cloudminder]

THE QUESTION STILL REMAINS -

WHY ARE WE PAYING SUCH HIGH SALARIES FOR SO MANY SCANDALS IN MISMANAGEMENT AT UC?

University of California's Top Earners (2008)

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2009/06/05/ucpay2008.DTL

In the 2008 calendar year, the U.C. system had more than 21,000 employees with total pay over $100,000. In addition, 537 employees made over $25,000 just in overtime pay. Find out who they were, what campuses they worked for and how much they made by searching the database below.

To perform a search, you can leave the fields blank or on "select" if you want broad results. For more narrow results, you can enter a person's name or select from the drop-down menus.

(Note: This data was provided by the University of California.)

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2009/06/05/ucpay2008.DTL#ixzz0XQo3PpBH

[cloudminder]

photo

* Farrah Fawcett helped prove UCLA leaked her health records

* UC regents award huge pay increases to execs while furloughing staff

* UCLA suspends its Willed Body

* UCSD Big Money and the Ball Club

* UC Regents Math Lesson

* Berkeley chancellor's perks raise eyebrows

* Regents excuse UC president in salary scandal

* UC Chief Yudof Changes Buyout Policy

* After the Fall

* Latest Scandals in Higher Ed

* Union protest pre-empts chancellor's annual meeting with staff

* Berkeley Chancellor delivers grim budget news..

TO READ THESE STORIES, SEE: http://cloudminder.blogspot.com/

READ THE NEWSPAPER INSTEAD OF JUST TRYING TO STORM WHEELER HALL OR DUMP GARBAGE ON THE DOORSTEP OF CALIFORNIA HALL...

[cloudminder]

WHERE WERE THE STUDENTS WHEN THESE STORIES AT UC WERE HAPPENING?

* Schwarzenegger vetoes whistleblower protections for UC workers

* 6,000 UCSF patients' data got put online

* Japanese Mob Boss Gave $100K to UCLA

* UC Irvine to fire whistleblower nurse?

* New UC Davis Chancellor Linked to "Clout" Admissions Probe

* UCSF refuses to release outside review of its finances

* Whistleblowers at Los Alamos Fired in Retaliation

* UCLA Dentist Whistleblower Resigns Post

* When Scientists Kidnap Embryos

* Claims Against UC Irvine's Fertility Clinic

* UC Irvine Med Center still out of compliance

* LANL Whistle-Blower Beaten

* The Case of the Battered Whistle-Blower

* Audit Firms backs up fired UCSF dean claim

* WhistleBlower Dean Kessler Fired From UCSF

* Meet Linda Morris Williams, in charge of whistle blowing at Cal

* UC Berkeley Alums Get Breached...AGAIN!

* UC Spending Big Despite Budget Crisis (video)

* UC Davis Chancellor's Actions Cause Concern

* UC Admits Misleading Public About Buyout Taker

* Robert Dynes example of larger UC problem

* Senator Grassley Supports Whistleblower

* Cal/OSHA chief to oversee criminal investigation of fatal UCLA lab fire

* Deadly UCLA lab fire leaves haunting questions

* What can be learned from the death of a young biochemist at UCLA?

* UC Irvine and Liver Transplants...

* Kin of 9 who died waiting accuse UCI

* UCLA acknowledges sale of body parts as donors' families sue school

* UC Berkeley computers hacked, 160,000 at risk

[Flavor]

I am still glad they are protesting greed.

[Flavor]

and where were you, the last 8 years when it started.

[graffitijoe]

Instead of too big to fail, maybe it's too big to survive.

[graffitijoe]

I say we scrap the whole thing and start over, let the current students join Obamas' Volunteer Corps for 3 or 4 years, then come back after the system is rebuilt.

[Flavor]

I am proud of these students, this is a disgrace to the human race. How can you just up the tuition cost on these poor students whose parents are already struggling to pay their tuition, what the hell are we showing & telling our young people, that it's fashionable to be greedy. I think we ought to be ashamed at what our young adults have seen at this time of their young life, but i am so glad that they are protesting about this. Hooray!

[graffitijoe]

Who should pay for them to become more wealthy in the future? The state? It's is in debt to the tune of $20 Billion and the taxpayers of CA are ready to revolt themselves.

If they want an education they need to pay - and get used to it, the defecits we are running now at the state and federal level will be paid by these same students in the decades to come.

[Flavor]

Nobody is saying a free ride, not one word of mine said free, those are your words, not mine. I still say that they should not hike up the tuition at this time, and I will still agree to that, that it should not be.

[Bettysdad]

And Mommy and Daddy sent you to private schools your whole life?

[jeanrenoir]

The students should be protesting their Boomer parents, whose selfish determination never to pay taxes has bankrupted the state and UC with it. The bottom line is that the Boomers have never wanted to actually pay their bills. They've wanted people like Reagan and Bush to cut their taxes, creating huge deficits for their kids to pay for with higher taxes some day. And they've lived their whole lives on a gravy train of easy credit which their profligate ways, and liar loans, have just bankrupted the financial system with. The Boomers's parents left them the most powerful, richest country in world history, just as UC was one of the two or three best universities in the country, with NO TUITION (because the Boomers' parents were, amazingly, actually willing to pay taxes to support the public good). Like the spoiled trust fund children they were, the Boomers then totally blew their inheritance, refused to pay taxes, lived on credit, bankrupted America, lost Afghanistan to Al Qaeda, and have left nothing but a mountain of debts and Social Security taxes for their unfortunate kids to have to pay off. Exactly the opposite of the way the Boomers were treated by their own, thoroughly responsible Greatest Generation parents, whom the Boomers spent the Sixties attacking as pigs. What a glorious generational record!

[Flavor]

You nor I asked to be in this world, two people got together and made you as well as myself. It is our duty to raise our children and try to provide for them the best that we can, and these students need help and their parents are struggling, just to try to keep them in college. Also, this is something i'm seeing wide spread of, people treating people like without me you won't make it. Let's be real here, NO STUDENT'S, NO WORK. If we don't have people to give to, then we don't have a job. No one is saying free but at this time we don't need to be hiking & hijacking parents to the poorhouse. The mentality of I got mine& now you get yours is WRONG and a deranged way of thinking. We are to give a helping hand up not a continual hijacking of fee's. There is nothing that you are anyone else can say, to make me think anything different on this matter, I won't change it and it is completely wrong. We have become greedy, greedy, greedy, and not just the Boomers but colleges also.

[Baltotoast]

The sad truth is the best graduate students will go elsewhere because they will get more support, the best professors will then leave, and the entire institution will spiral downward.

The UC system is a national treasure and it needs much more support from the California government.

[Flavor]

Baltotoast, they don't have to raise the tuition, they do it because they can. At this time it would not be feasable for that, the country can't afford it. Right here, a college here hasn't been paid by the state, and they are trying hard not to raise college tuition on the parents, so they had reserve money, which will tied them over for awhile. I think all colleges should do this, have money reserved & not get so greedy.

[yourmonscalling]

MORE AND MORE BLOOD SUCKING CORPORATE GREED

[graffitijoe]

...or is it more and more feelings of entitlement from the me, me, me generation?

I say let them all go to work for Obamas' Volunteer Corps for a couple of years to prove they are willing to give back to the community.

[Siebenstein]

Oh no, I am moving out of this threat. I can tell that most of the posters here don't have a quality education and don't even understand how it works........pffffffff

[jeanrenoir]

Poor innocent American VOTERS who voted for Nixon twice, Reagna twice, and W twice. And now are shocked that these choices have bankrupted the country and themselves. The Americans who voted for these crooks and fools deserve exactly what they've now gotten. They are not "victims." It's all the voters' fault. When you vote for a known crook like Nixon, and a B-movie pitch man like Reagan, and a Texas cowboy wannabe you'd like to drink beer with like W, you are being a completely irresponsible fool. Franklin had a great line about this: "Experience is a hard school. But for a fool, it's the only one he will ever have." American voter stupidity has sown the wind, now they are reaping the whirlwind, and it's probably too late for Obama to be able to fix the mess these terrible Republican presidents created, aided by Clinton's de-regulation of the banking system which caused the recent Wall St. debacle.

[Baltotoast]

Oh come on, try citizen greed, government greed, but you can't hang this on on the corporations....

[statementOfIncensed]

In India, college tuition is affordable even to the poor, admissions decided largely through a rigorous exam, producing hordes of talented and educated professionals. Yes- ironically, a nation with, historically, an explicit caste system is less geared towards the mere reproduction of wealth and priviledge than ours. That's what all these socioeconomic barriers to entry are for: to prevent precisely the sort of level playing field in which legacy and wealth provide absolutely no advantage in admissions into distinguished institutions. To horde a shrinking pie- notice neither of the two developing economies/imminent hegemons of India and China are hampered by our Dickensian longings.

[graffitijoe]

If it's so great in China & India why are so many students and others constantly streaming into the US?

How many US born citizens are flooding over to China & India? If not, why not?

[Siebenstein]

due to the fairytales they are told by GOP'ers

[jeanrenoir]

Just so. American Boomers have gutted this country with their nonstop selfishness and drugged out refusal to notice reality, much less deal with it effectively. They've thereby set up a situation in which their poor children will have to watch China and India bury their country even faster than they would have in any case. All anyone has to do is watch the documentary 2 Million Minutes to see what relative slackers even our best high school students are, compared to the best in China and India. The American kids are inheritors of their Boomer parents' idea that the most important thing in life is having fun, a delusion that has little effect on smart kids in China and India, who are going to absolutely crush us in math, science, engineering, and, before long, IT, which India will take away from American as thoroughly as China has already taken our manufacturing. At least we'll have Paris Hilton left to party on with.